According to former title challenger, Paulo Costa, a host of UFC executives including Hunter Campbell and even CEO, Dana White had to force the unbeaten Khamzat Chimaev’s hand into a pairing with him last year, before injury ruled the Brazilian from competing.
Costa, the current number ten ranked middleweight contender and one-time title challenger, has been sidelined since he suffered a split decision loss to former champion, Sean Strickland in the co-main event of UFC 302 back in June, marking his second consecutive loss of the year following a prior judging defeat to another ex-champion, Robert Whittaker.
However, scheduled to fight at UFC 294 last October in Abu Dhabi, a severe case of bursitis forced Paulo Costa out of a scheduled co-main event fight with arch-rival, Chimaev in a potential title-eliminator.
Paulo Costa claims UFC forced Khamzat Chimaev to accept fight with him
And according to the Belo Horizonte native, the UFC and their powers that be had to force the Chechen’s hand into accepting a bout with him, claiming Chimaev had always rejected the opportunity to fight against him.
“This fight [with Khamzat Chimaev] was so hard to get because he always said no [to the fight],” Paulo Costa said during an appearance on Jake Shields’ YouTube channel. “So UFC, Hunter (Campbell), maybe Dana (White), I don’t know — but Hunter I’m sure, he push him. He say, ‘Okay, if you don’t fight Paulo in Abu Dhabi, you fight no one.’”
As for Chimaev, the unbeaten prospect makes his return this weekend in the co-main event of UFC 308, taking on soon-to-be common-foe, Whittaker in a five round co-headliner at the middleweight limit in another potential title eliminator clash.
Sidelined since improving to 13-0 back in October of last year, Chimaev remained on that UFC 294 card against ex-champion, Kamaru Usman, beating the former pound-for-pound number one in controversial majority decision victory in the Middle East.